Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1887-12-30
DIPHTHERIA.
ITS CONTAGlOUSNESS AND THE
MEANS OF PREVENTION.
Letter from the Eminent DIR. Peters OF
New York.

To the Editor Of the Rutland Herald:
Unusual precautions against the spread
of diDhthera are not amlss at this season
rs we seem on the border of great out
breaks all over the country, as the disease
generally prevails most in the winter
months. In New York there has been a
steady weekly increase of diphtheria for
four months past, Notwithstanding the
exertions of the new board of health.
Diphtheria will probably increase here
until next April, or warmer weather
comes. The streets of New York are dir
tier than they have been since 1881, when
we had the greatest epidemic that New
York ever suffered from. The streets
nave been torn up in every direction for
the purpose of making subways for cleo.
trio, gas and steam heating pipes. The
foul earths trenches have not been thor
oughly disinfected with DR.. Goldsmith's
bromine, although that is both cheap
ana effectual one pound, costing 60 cents,
can be diluted with $50 gallons of water.
But dirty streets are not the only cause
of diphthera. The germs are exactly like
those which abound in filth and cause
common putrefaction, only they are larg.
er more active and more virulent. Diph-
iberia Is distinctly filth disease, and is
also infectious and contagious. Some
times the contagion is not very manifest,
especially in membraneous or diphtheretic
Group, when the disease being low down
III the windpipe, very little viruent mucus
! is hawked up.
At the present time l am greatly inter
ested In an epidemic of diphtheria which
l. going on in small town in New Jersey.
Two children were attacked first, rather
| mil recovered
mother, aged SO, died. The physicians
| pronounced the disease not contagious,
| but the grandmother, aged 63, who helped
To nurse the children and her daughter,
with whom she slept several nights, had
narrow escape tor her life, under my care
A lady who was devoted in her care Of
all the sick Is now very, very i'll with diph-
iberia, and also a little girl who was the
principal friend and playmate of the
sick children. The body was kept in the
house for three days, and visited by many
sympathizing friends. The coffin was
also open on the day of the funeral, which
happened to be very stormy, so that all
doors and windows were closed and the
furnace kept in full blast. 1t is needless
to say that that little town is severely
afflicted. not by the dispensation of provi-
dence but by the ignorance and careless
less of some of the physicians.
An excellent New Jersey consulting
physician who was.called from distance,
drew my attention to throat distemper
among horses, which was going on in the
neigh borhood, and told me that he had
seen an epidemic of diphtheria some years
ago which was preceded by a like distem-
per in horses. 1t affected old and young
horses alike and those which had been
stabbed for years, as well as young or
green horses. AS far back as 1864, the
great Council of Hygiene of the Academy
of Medicine, consisting of Drs; valentine
Mott Willard Parker, Edward Della field
Elisha Harris, f. K. Peaslee, Austin Flint,
Frank Hamilton, Gordon Buck, Alfred
c. Post, John Z. Metcalfe and twenty
others of like stamp, drew attention to
the influence of filthy stables in causing
or aggravating diphtheria, pneumonia
and even contagious opbthalmia. This
matter Is receiving great attention now in
New York. DR.. jacob has been very
earnest in calling attention to the lnnu
ence of slight cases of diphtherla in adults
often called fOlhcular tonsilltis, In spread
ing diphtheria in children. These
= cases keep about ther business OF
pleasures, hawking and splitting in the
streets, rs we'll as in houses, stores and
. churches.
Dirty cellars and back, yards are great
provocatives of dphtheria. The New
/ York children in families where case OF
diphtheria is going on are forbidden tC
} attend the public schools, and their names
are read out, so that all may avoid them
But then they go everywhere else, even tC
Sunday school, church, to the circus anC
: other shows, and run about everywhere
Still, the family physicians are held undel
penalty to carry out dislufectiou thorough
ly i'll every infected house, and health
l board inspector usually sees to it that Thu
= is done.
) Ibeleve that simply cleansing the throa
' and nose with salt and water, or veal
solution of alum or boracic acid, seyera
times A day. will prevent dlphtheria; or
pinch of gallic acid or alum dry upon thu
tongue, aud allowed to dissolve there yer.
slowly. Still nothing will take the plac
of absolute cleanliness and thorough dis
infection after everything Is cleansed.
Yours very respectfully,
JOHN G.. PETERS, NJ. ID.
, New York, Dec. 10, 1887